Philadelphia

Creative Funding for Pop-Up Park

In Philadelphia, a recent planning school graduate and his friends are attempting to create a pop-up park in East Passyunk using social media and contest winnings as funding tools.

May 24, 2010 - Philadelphia Inquirer

Quality Public Space vs. Lack of Funds

The group that maintains Philadelphia's famed Rittenhouse Square has put a lot of maintenance work into making it a lovely space, but is faced with mounting expenses and needs new ways to pay for them.

May 12, 2010 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Cities Look to Crack Down on Flash Mobs

After a series of recent "flash mobs" of hundreds of young people spontaneously gathering in downtown Philadelphia, city officials are looking at ways of reducing the incidents and the potentially dangerous conditions they create.

March 30, 2010 - The New York Times

Big Box Casino On Its Way To Philadelphia

The new casino rising along Philadelphia's Delaware River is likely to be little more than a drab Big Box with gambling inside, according to this review from Philadelphia Inquirer architecture critic Inga Saffron.

March 23, 2010 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Waterfront Rail Plans Advance in Philadelphia

Plans to construct a waterfront rail line in Philadelphia are moving forward, with the recent approval of a $6.5 million contract to perform environmental reviews.

March 19, 2010 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Remixing Architecture, Without Breaking the Rules

Architecture critic Inga Saffron takes a look at what she thinks is "the most innovative take on the traditional rowhouse that Philadelphia has seen in years." Saffron remarks on how the building obeys the rules and innovates at the same time.

March 16, 2010 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Learning From Philadelphia's Transit System Improvements

The city of Toronto's public transit system has been plagued by dysfunctional service and rider complaints. Officials are looking to Philadelphia for lessons on improving their troubled system.

March 8, 2010 - The Toronto Star

Biking The TIGER

Bicycling and walking advocates should also be happy about the new TIGER grants - almost half of the funded projects included funding for bike and ped infrastructure.

February 19, 2010 - Sierra Club Compass blog

Rail Plans Move Forward in Philadelphia

Plans to create a waterfront rail line in Philadelphia are moving forward, as the city approves funding for environmental studies and early design work.

February 19, 2010 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Getting the Transportation Glue Back in Philly's Waterfront

Transportation has been called the glue that hold cities together. This oped argues that Philadelphia's waterfront is sorely missing that glue.

January 29, 2010 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Population Inches Up in Philadelphia

For the first time in 59 years, the population of Philadelphia increased in 2008, according to revised figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.

December 11, 2009 - Plan Philly

Transit in Philly Rides Again... For Now

Commuters and workers alike are grateful the SEPTA strike is over, but fare hikes of an undisclosed amount are expected for the next year.

November 11, 2009 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Gaming Officials Monkeying With Land Use

In Philadelphia, the Gaming Control Board is made up of 10 men, 9 of which don't live in the city. A recent decision by the board will destroy two planned developments that would have improve Philly's character, says arch. critic Inga Saffron.

September 14, 2009 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Urban Farming Made Profitable

An online publisher set out to show that urban farming could be profitable. In her fourth year, she brought in $68k from her half-acre plot in Philadelphia.

August 25, 2009 - Governing Magazine

A Big City Without A Newspaper

As bankruptcy hearings for two newspapers in Philadelphia unfold, this piece looks at the state of newspapers in cities and wonders what will happen when a big American city loses its newspaper.

August 11, 2009 - The New York Times

Feds Stimulate Crime-Ridden and Poor Cities

Crime numbers and struggling city budgets have caused the Justice department to issue $1 billion in federal stimulus funds to 1,046 communities to beef up their police forces.

August 3, 2009 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

What Color is Your Cultural District?

South Broad Street in downtown Philadelphia looks a bit blue at times. But stick around for a few minutes and its complexion changes.

July 31, 2009 - New Urban News

The Future of Francisville

The Philadelphia neighborhood of Francisville is about to get an urban makeover, but two competing visions have very different ideas of what that means.

July 28, 2009 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Public Space Starting Small On Philadelphia's Waterfront

A competition to redesign Philadelphia's Pier 11 represents a concentrated -- and viable -- effort to create quality public space along the city's waterfront, according to Philadelphia Inquirer architecture critic Inga Saffron.

June 28, 2009 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Is River Setback "An Illegal Taking"?

Philadelphia's City Council has approved two new measures that would preserve historic buildings along the Delaware River and require 100 ft. green setbacks. Some developers are protesting the ruling, saying it amounts to an illegal taking.

June 22, 2009 - Philadelphia Inquirer

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.